


To Be Young Again

by Navnit



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-09
Updated: 2015-10-13
Packaged: 2018-04-08 11:33:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4303254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Navnit/pseuds/Navnit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of Age of Ultron Tony finally steps foot in his father's New York Mansion for the first time since his death, he discovers his Dads old files containing research done using Captain Americas blood and a formula to create a de-aging serum. Meanwhile news is brought to him that Peggy Carter the woman who had a hand in raising him more than his mother was about to die. Faced with an impossible decision and his moral compass askew because of Ultron he calls up Steve Rogers to ask for help in deciding Peggy Carters ultimate fate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"The attic?" muttered Tony to himself as he pulled down the staircase leading up to the space in the ceiling of his father's mansion in New York and spotted the boxes all stamped with the Stark Industries logo. "Really dad? Could you be anymore cliché?"

He ascended the stairs thinking to himself, not for the first  time, what exactly was he doing here? His world had been shaken these past few days, Ultron going all Skynet with a dash of Pinnochio was still a disturbing memory, he didn't know exactly how he ended up in the house he hadn't stepped in since his dad died.

He had had it well kept though and it was still as magnificent as it had been back in the day only more empty. And now here he was skulking through his own attic shuffling through his dad's old files for what reason again? He still didn't know.

However after putting aside plans for a lung enhancement gas for soldiers on battlefields and notes on a vest made to provide heat and warmth in  the extreme of climates, he eventually pulled out a large green globe with a switch out of a box labeled as simply Project FOY.

He opened the files in the box and shook his head. "What were you up to dad?" he asked givng a cursory glance around to the other boxes and then standing up.

He pulled out his Stark phone. "Friday, have a team come up to Stark Mansion to secure and catalog each and every item in the attic, make sure they are fully vetted and all NDAs are signed. I don't want any of this getting into the wrong hands."

At once, sir. Said the cool female voice that was standing in for JARVIS while he ran diagnostics on his core after what Ultron had done to him.

"Also get a call in to Ms Potts, find out when she'll be coming in."

'Yes, sir.'

* * *

Back in his lab Tony cursed not for the first time whatever had caused the Hulk to take Bruce and go AWOL, most of these notes involved biochemistry and notes on the Super Soldier Serum and no one knew more about that subject then Bruce Banner, plus he was great for bouncing off mad scientist ideas off of.

Not for naught though was Tony Stark a genius with multiple PhDs to his name, he was fully capable of engineering this serum himself but what he needed to know was should he?

He needed a moral compass that wasn't his own because his was skewed ten ways to Sunday and after the Ultron incident he no longer trusted himself to do the right thing.

He could actually fix all of his dad's errors and complete the abandoned formula but looking back at all that happened because of people like him and his dad he didn't know whether or not it was right to do this anymore.

He frowned at himself, there was a time when he used to believe that anything they created through science that could help society be better and grow was the right thing to do, in fact the Tony Stark from ten years ago would have actually felt obligated to complete Howards work simply because Science! And progress and of course more money for Stark Industries and let's not forget one more thing for him to brag about.

But ever since his kidnapping the bragging and the need for more money just became a front and his experience with SHIELD and it's recent fall told it's own story about the progress of the human race while the recent Ultron disaster showed  _him_ just what he and Science! was capable of.

He looked down at the formula once again and then up at the holographic presentation of JARVIS' core, he looked okay; some electrical synapse like fires indicated his functionality and he sighed. He felt extremely guilty about what had happened to JARVIS, some might argue that it was silly to feel guilty for a computers feelings but JARVIS was more than a computer; he had created the AI to be sentient and the only reason he didn't appear to be more lifelike was because he hadn't given JARVIS an actual body to inhabit.

As JARVIS' creator he had an intimate knowledge of the inner workings of his brain and when he saw the red lines adorning the inner rings of his main core Tony had a hard time not flinching back. JARVIS' pain receptors were on fire and if he had been an actual person then he would have been howling deliriously with pain and anguish, as it was JARVIS could choose not to project his emotions into his voice so that anyone listening to him would not recognize a single ounce of discomfort from him.

What Ultron had done to him had been brutal and invasive, he had effectively violated the AI, smothering the life out of him, the red lines were the result of JARVIS' struggle to defend himself against the unexpected and violent attack.

JARVIS had requested Tony to allow him to shutdown for a while to recover and diagnose any more problems resulting from Ultrons invasion. Tony had granted the request immediately and initiated Friday as a stand in and when JARVIS was feeling up to it he would ask the AI to make sure Friday could handle any and all responsibilities that JARVIS handled, because by the look of it the damage done by Ultron to JARVIS' core was not going to be repaired over night.

He wished he could consult his AI about his dad's formula, see if he had any information in his archives about the serum and any advice on how to go about deciding to make it or not. He looked to the left to a screen displaying his suits functionality during the battle with Ultron and how it had held up, what improvements were needed and what modifications would be required should a similar situation arise.

He watched as footage of the battle showed Cap directing people into the shuttles sent by Fury's helicarrier and paused the footage showing Cap his cowl down as he pointed earnestly towards the shuttle his shield aloft the perfect image that was at the same time intimidating and awe-inspiring.

And he suddenly found his moral compass.

"Friday," He said sharply. "ask Captain Rogers if he could come meet me at his earliest convenience, it's imperative that he come as soon as possible."

'Yes,sir.' There was a pause and then. '...Sir there is a call coming through to the tower from Washington.'

He blinked. "Who is it?"

The number is listed under emergency contacts as a top priority from SHIELDs Retirement Facility there.

Tony's heart went numb, he looked around frantically for a moment. He needed Pepper for this, he shook his head; what didn't he need Pepper for. He took a deep breath and spoke. "Put it through."

"Mr Stark?" came a clear female voice from the other end.

"Yes." He stated not able to summon up much snark or contempt to answer any other way.

"This is Sharon Carter, I'm Peggy's niece."

Tony closed his eyes over the tears threatening to slip past his eyes. "I know who you are Sharon, is something wrong?" he asked despite knowing that she wouldn't have called if something wasn't wrong.

He heard a sigh from the other end. "Mr Stark, Aunt Peggy is not doing very well, the doctors... the doctors think that she doesn't have much long left..."

Tony didn't say anything but hot tears fell down his cheeks as he turned away to look out into the night lights of New York the sudden pain in his chest making it hard to breath.

"Mr Stark," said Sharon, her voice was now rough as if she was trying to maintain her composure. "Peggy has told me countless stories regarding your childhood and that she was there for most of it... She has told me how close you were... she would want you to be there, even if...." he heard her voice crack and he hardened his resolve against letting out the sob building in his chest. "Even if she might not remember..."

Tony glared out at the picturesque night life view of New York and wondered how the world could go on living when one of the only people who he gave a damn about lay dying in a retirement home not being able to remember anyone for more than a few minutes at a time.

"How... " he paused to clear his throat. "How long do they think..."

Sharon sniffed clearly having trouble. "T-they're saying it will be any day now."

Tony nodded even though there was no one to see him. "Okay... t-tell Aunt Peg," He paused to gather his thoughts. "Tell her that I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Yes, Mr Stark."

"Please.... " he cleared his throat again desperate for some sense of composure. "Sharon, it's Tony."

"A-alright Tony, I'll.... I'll give Aunt Peggy your message and I...uh... I guess I'll see you soon... "

"Yeah. Yeah you will, Sharon I promise."

There was a soft "Okay" on the other end then she hung up.

Tony's head dropped forward as he leaned his head against the cold glass for a moment trying to get a handle on his emotions. Two seconds later he turned around wiping tears of his face and calling...

"Friday! Get me Steve Rogers right now."

The call went through immediately and Tony listened to the dial tone for a few seconds before....

"Tony?"

"Rogers I need you at the tower. How quick can you get here."

"Tony I'm with the new recruits, they just had their first training exercise... "

Tony cut him off. "Rogers I don't give a damn about any of that, what I need is to get your ass to my tower ASAP."

There was breathing on the line for a second before. "Alright Tony. I'll have Natasha fly me over, ETA fifteen minutes."

 "Make it ten," He said shortly. "I'll have Friday ready to receive you."

And he cut off the line and started pacing left and right growing agitated by the minute waiting for the arrival of Captain America. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a lot of emotions flowing around post AoU. I hope you enjoyed reading and please don't forget to leave a feedback be it kudos or comment or both! They are appreciated and motivate me to keep writing. Those who came over from Destiny Intervenes, I hope I didn't disappoint. Anyways til the next chap!!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys thanks for all the kudos. Here's the next chapter.

Steve jumped out of the quinjet before Natasha had landed, jogging off to the entrance to Stark's penthouse suite his mouth set and his eyes alert. It had barely been twenty four hours since they had had been involved in the biggest fight of their lives against Ultron. The fact that he originated from _this_  tower made him extremely cautious and Stark's brisk tone on the phone didn't help his suspicions.

Usually Steve wasn't a guy who would let someone talk to him like Stark had on the phone earlier and he would have a few choice words to say about someone demanding him to do something and being as vague as Tony had been. But something in his tone had shaken Steve and he had grown concerned for his friend. Natasha had agreed immediately to the trip; looking for any and all avenues to fill the void left in the wake of Bruce's departure.

She was quick enough, shutting down the engine and catching up with him just as he reached the glass doors to the suite.

"Amy idea what Stark wants?" she asked as Steve opened the door and allowed her to walk through; Natasha usually humored his 1940s sensibilities but he never underestimated her not to kick his ass if he ever condescended down to her because of her gender, thankfully he had more sense than that.

Steve shrugged at her query. "No idea, it's Stark though so best to be cautious."

Natasha nodded seriously palming her waist belt where her gun was holstered. She was dressed casually, like him, not in combat gear but he had his shield at his back and he had no doubt that Natasha was armed for espionage even if he couldn't see it.

With his experiences these past few days he was more grateful for that realization then incredulous.

_Good evening, Captain Rogers and Agent Romanoff._ Came a cool female voice from the speakers. _Mr Stark wishes for you to join him in his workshop, if you would get in the elevator I will direct you to the correct floor._

Steve nodded and made for the lift on the other side of the room with Natasha in tow. She was talking to the AI though which he found amusing if not a little strange.

"Hey. Friday right? How's JARVIS?"

_Mr JARVIS is ,I'm afraid, at the moment not doing so well. He had requested time from Mr Stark to recover from the attack to his systems and we are waiting on his full diagnostics to complete to determine the damage done._

"Oh," she said while Steve looked on feeling surreal. "That's too bad, I liked him. If you have any contact with him would you please tell him I am sorry for what was done to him and that I wish him a fast recovery."

_Your request had been logged Agent Romanoff and should I encounter Mr JARVIS I will certainly pass on your best wishes._

"Thank you Friday and it's Natasha by the way, I've not been an Agent for a while."

_Of course, Natasha._

Steve caught her eye and she raised an elegant red eyebrow. "What, they _are_ sentient and I _did_ like JARVIS, I got to know him when I was working undercover. Remember what happened to the last AI we pissed off? I'm thinking we keep our relations with our future Masters amicable don't you?"

Steve's mouth curled up into a smile and he shook his head ruefully. Sometimes Natasha acted in a way that made him forget that she was a deadly assassin capable of killing him in sixteen ways inside this elevator even if she wasn't armed. She acted so carefree that it threw him, he always got the unexpected from her and it was refreshing. She was probably his closest friend in the new century and he liked thinking that she experienced moments of innocence like with the AI before. Because her work with the Avengers and SHIELD before it was anything but innocent.

The lift door opened letting them out in into Stark's workshop, he had a vivid image of Thor lifting Tony bodily by the neck in anger in this very room, he couldn't deny experiencing a surge of satisfaction at that memory, not much phased Tony but that incident had given him pause.

The Tony pacing in front of him though seemed phased, in fact he looked frantic with worry. And were his eyes red? He saw Natasha pause beside him, she was of course a master at the art of reading people, he watched as her brows furrowed when she scrutinized him.

Steve stepped forward. "Tony? What's going on?"

Tony attempted an unconvincing smile and turned around to swipe at the holographic screen in front of him Steve caught a glimpse of the hologram he had brought up a few days ago showing JARVIS' core before it was wiped clean and that screen vanished.

"Cap," He said turning around. "And Miss Romanoff too. Thanks for coming so quickly, I'm sorry if I sounded abrupt on the phone but there is something that I need your help with."

Natasha came around to stand next to Tony not close enough to touch him but enough to see that yes he did have red eyes and his voice was gruff like he had been been crying.

"Tony?" asked Natasha a closed off expression on her face, her voice was the softest he had ever heard, she didn't even talk like this with Bruce. "Is everything alright? Did..." he saw her swallow then continue. "Did something happen to Pepper...?"

Steve's heart sunk. He had not been around Miss Potts much but in the limited time he had known her he knew one thing; Tony might be a lot of things but he could not fault his choice in women, or more accurately one woman. Pepper Potts was kind, gentle and amazingly beautiful. She treated him like a human being instead of a super hero like most of the world and best of all she could handle Tony Stark with one hand tied behind her back. It was widely known throughout Stark Tower that Tony thought that Pepper hung the moon and anybody looking to hurt her would face the entire power and influence that Tony Stark held in his grease stained hands.

It was also widely known that Pepper Potts was the only person that Tony really cared about even more than himself and that was saying something. If something had indeed happened to Miss Potts then Steve didn't want to think about what Stark was going through.

"No no," He said shaking his head and Steve let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "No Nat, Peppers fine. I just got a call from her after I hung up on Steve. She'll be home by tomorrow."

"Then what did you want with us," she asked stepping closer making Steve wonder if someone  might have replaced Natasha with a robot when he wasn't looking, she was acting so completely out of character. He wondered how much of this was Bruce's influence and how much of it was theirs, after all after the fall of SHIELD Natasha had been adrift without an anchor, it was the Avengers that had reached out to her and helped give her a sense of purpose.

Tony looked from Natasha to Steve for a moment before seemingly coming to a decision. He walked over to a desk and picked up a file marked with a logo he instantly recognized; a spread eagle insignia with a ring in the background proclaiming it's name as Strategic Scientific Reserve. SSR; the company that Peggy and later he and the Howling Commandos reported to.

"This," Tony stated with a little more zeal in his voice then before. "I found it in my Dad's attic along with tons of other classified material and documents." He handed the file to Steve who flipped through it with Natasha looking from over his shoulder.

"The successful creation of the first and only Super Soldier, the people interested in replicating Erskines formula took vials of blood from you," he looked to Steve who was busy taking in the file which had a lot of terms that he simply did not understand.

He nodded none the less remembering the tenuous process of the scientists poking and prodding him for blood samples and urine samples and God knows what else. He remembered Peggy stepping in later on and demanding he be let go.

"They took twelve vials of blood."

Tony nodded now pulling up holograms of formulas and theories that didn't make any sense to him. "Yes yes. Eleven went to the government and one went to my dad and he used it; at least some of it, to devise this formula." He pointed to a page in the file that had an equation as long as the page itself and he saw the equation mirrored on the hologram but when he looked back down his serum enhanced photographic memory allowed him to see that some of the values on Tony's was different from his Dads.

Tony was talking again. "Now you can see here and here are the places where Dad got things wrong and I was able to fix but see he couldn't really complete the formula because as he states in that file his sample got missing sometime after he was involved in an incident where a couple of Red Room operatives," He nodded to Natasha. "Managed to get into his head making him do their bidding for a few hours."

Natasha's face scrunched up at that. "Yeah, they are really good at doing that."

"Anyways," continued Stark. "Dad figured he lost the vial somewhere in the ocean and was not recoverable so he abandoned the project with a citation 'To Be Continued When Original Test Subject Is Found'."

Steve winced as he read those words himself, he hated the idea that Howard who he considered a friend might have only been looking for him so that he could continue to poke and prod him some more.

Tony as if reading his mind said. "Yup my dad may have been a genius but he wasn't winning the humanitarian award any time soon." Tony seemed to have regained his stride and his extremely adept ability to annoy him constantly.

Steve shut the file and glowered at him. "What was Howard working on and why did you call us here Tony?" he asked in a no nonsense manner his Captain America voice doing overtime.

"Ah," said Tony snatching up the file and opening it again to the formula. "This is a formula for a serum that he created, a flawed formula sure but he got most of the things right."

"What's it for?" asked Natasha her usual bland mask back on, her impatience with him evident.

"The Projects name? FOY? It stands for, wait for it," He said and walked up to the hologram and spun it around so it twirled in place like a top and when it stopped he declared with all the air of a circus master announcing the final act. "Fountain of Youth!"

There was a beat of silence and then longer in which Tony deflated slightly and then.

"You're kidding me?" said Steve.

"No," replied Tony. "Not at all cap."

"You're telling us,"  said Natasha her voice definitely betraying her annoyance with Tony. "That Howard Stark created the Elixir of Life!?"

Tony blinked. "What? No. Haven't you been listening? He couldn't complete it. Your blood," He said pointing at Cap. "Was lost so he abandoned it, but this formula?" he pointed to the hologram. "Is a fixed version of his and this I have determining is the formula that will allow you to be able to grow younger and slow your aging process to a snails pace."

"So why haven't you made it already," asked Natasha as she cast a cursory glance around the workshop possibly looking for anything that might look like an Elixir.

Tony looked around for a moment not meeting their eyes and Steve suspected the worst until.. "Well I need Caps blood to synthesize it and...."

Steve narrowed his eyes. "And?"

"I don't know if I _should;_ " finished Tony leaving them all flabbergasted.

"If you should?" asked Natasha her tone suspicious. "Since when did the question become from 'how much will it cost' or 'how long will it take' to 'whether or not you should'," she pulled her gun out and only half jokingly asked. "Who are you and what have you done with Tony Stark."

Tony's gaze hardened on the former Russian Super spy for a moment  before turning away. "Since Ultron turned my greatest idea into all of our worst nightmares." They all sobered up at that remark. It seemed that even Tony Stark could learn from his mistakes.

"So... " ventured Steve. "You called me here because...?"

"Because out of all of us from me to Thor to Bruce to Widow here," He nodded to Natasha. "You are the only one I can trust to not only always do the right thing but to also know what the right thing is." Steve blinked in surprise at that comment, it had almost sounded like a compliment.

Natasha on the other hand hadn't even twitched at the collective insult Stark had thrown against her, she merely observed the situation gun now safely holstered again.

"Tony... I... "

"It's the truth Cap. Look I know you're not a boy scout and probably never were but the one thing that both me and my dad can agree on is that you're morality has never been compromised. You are **good** Cap in the most basest sense of that word. And I need someone good to tell me whether or not I should make this serum or not."

Steve was silent for a minute thinking things over before...

"Tell me everything you can about this serum, any and all side effects and don't hide anything from me Stark because jf you use me to make a decision on things I want to know exactly what I'm agreeing to."

And they spent the next twenty minutes discussing the pros and cons of doing this. Natasha sometimes adding her own two cents every now and then.

And when they stood back up to study the hologram Steve spoke up.

"So it is a variant on the super soldier serum, synthesized using my blood so it won't be as strong as me or as fast...?"

Tony nodded. "Peak human condition and you,"  he said shaking a lazy hand at his abs. "surpass them. Plus aging slows to a grind and any and all diseases are cured and the body is made immune. It sort of like the serum that they used on Romanoff over here only if Romanoff were to take _this_ one she would shrink down to a baby." He paused and then looked back at her. "Hey maybe we could use you as the first test subject, eh Natasha?"

Natasha merely raised an eyebrow at him until he diverted his gaze. "Maybe not." He muttered and turned to wave his hands at the formula. "I tweaked the formula using the data from all the other unsuccessful attempts at recreating the serum, he pulled up files from the past few decades showing various people undergoing scientific procedures.

"The Red Skull." Steve flinched as he saw Arnin Zola administering an injection into a non red skulled Johan Schmidt.

"The Black Widow Ops Program." He cast a glance at a stoned faced Natasha before bringing up images of young girls, all probably under the age of ten, cuffed to the headboards of their beds, some showed them in combat stances facing each other and a lot of them showed them receiving injections while strapped nude in metal beds, all of them showed no sign of emotion as they received doses of what he presumed was the serum.

"The Hulk and the Abomination." Tony pulled up footage of Banner exposing himself to Gamma radiation, he felt Natasha shift this time as they watched their friend go through his first and extremely painful transformation. Then Tony played footage of the transformed Emille Blonsky as the Abomination going toe to toe with the Hulk right in the middle of Harlem. 

"All variations at an attempt at reaching the same goal," Tony looked at him significantly.

"Me," Steve nodded looking at the images his eyes narrowed. "They want to recreate what happened to me."

Tony nodded. "Like it or not cap, you are one of a kind and Erskine and my dad achieved no little feat when making you." He gestured back to the display. "These are a few of the various attempts at 'you' only these were probably the only ones that had any form of success."

Steve looked at the cover of the FOY folder. "But what does the serum in me have to do with Howard's formula?"

"Well it's based of the original serum isn't it...?" Tony asked impatiently but then reconsidered. "Well it's based of of your blood actually. He couldn't get his hands on any of the original formula mainly because it didn't exist so he worked with the next best thing only he knew then what we all know now."

Steve raised his eyebrow this time in question. "The Super Soldier Serum cannot be recreated using your blood," He stated half triumphantly and half dejectedly. "And so instead of making the serum he decided to work with that he had and created a rejuvenation serum instead; a serum that would de age a person by more than fifty years and give them a slight boost in speed, agility and endurance while almost completely stoppering the aging process. Unfortunately the blood sample went missing during a time when he was forced to stop his experiments and clear his name when accused of treason."

"Treason?" said Natasha in surprise voicing Steves concern.

"Relax," placated Tony. "He was cleared of all charges but between this brief hiatus his sample of Caps blood went missing and he was forced to permanently shelf the idea."

Steve nodded taking it all in. "And now you want to unshelf it?"

Steve watched as Tony squared his shoulders against the slight accusation in his voice. "Cap. You need to understand that had I found this formula three days ago? I wouldn't have given a single thought towards not creating it," He looked to Natasha. "And believe it or not neither would Bruce. One of the main reasons we work so well together is because we both believe in the progress of science and our duty to ensure progress, but Bruce also had an ability to see the line and stop short of going too far. I have never been able to see that line and the last time I ignored it when Bruce showed me the line was two days ago."

There was silence for another moment and then. "I'm sorry Tony but I've seen the horrors of what happens to people playing around with any variation of that formula." His strength resolved even as Tony's face crumpled. "I understand what you mean about progress, hell it was because of this progress that I signed up to be pumped full of that serum in the first place, but it's not safe and it has caused more harm than good throughout history. So no, Tony. I don't think you should make this serum and I'm sorry but I will not be providing the necessary blood samples to help you achieve it."

He stood up and walked up to Tony placing a comforting hand on his shoulder but Tony shrugged him off turning around to nod his head at the holographic projections.

"I promised myself that if you said no that I would shelf it and not think of it again... "

Steve frowned. "But...?"

Tony grunted and Steve blinked in surprise as a tear rolled down his cheek unchecked. "But that was before I got a call from Sharon Carter."

"Sharon..." said Steve shifting now to look straight at the billionaire.

"Yeah," He replied, wiping his face and steeling his resolve. "She called to tell me that Peggy Carter had only a few more days to live," He looked straight into Steve's stricken eyes. "And I think that _this_ serum might be the only thing that can save her."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was chapter two, I hope you liked it. If you did then I urge you with every fibre of my being that you leave a comment along with you kudos down below. This request is because both of these things give me feedback and helps me churn out stories much faster, even if it is just a single word, as long as its there it helps.
> 
> Shameless Plug: My Other Story
> 
> Steve, Peggy and Bucky from 1947 find themselves somehow in present time. Read Destiny Intervenes here:  
> http://archiveofourown.org/works/3308672/chapters/7227857


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all your kudos and comments for the last chapter, sorry if this update is a little late, I have a couple more stories going on with this one and got a little bit delayed, any-who here's chapter three.
> 
> EDIT: Apparently there is an inconsistency regarding Natasha's knowledge of Peggy Carter as depicted in this chapter as opposed to what is shown in the Winter Soldier. Natasha in the movie has no idea who Peggy Carter is when she sees her photo and you'll notice my Natasha did know. Sorry if that bothers you guys but I seriously don't remember that piece of information and it led me to write this. 
> 
> But then again, if I think about it I ask to myself; why? Why doesn't Natasha Romanoff, a former Russian spy, the Black Widow, not know who Peggy Carter is. Season One of Agent Carter clearly shows that the Red Room knows about her seeing as they sent Dottie after her.
> 
> And Red Room aside, Peggy Carter isn't just Steve Rogers old flame, she's a co-founder of SHIELD and is very closely associated with Howard Stark. Such a high profile target and the Black Widow doesn't know who she is? Yeah, my version may be inconsistent but it at least makes a hell of a lot of sense then what Marvel is trying to tell us. 
> 
> To those who this inconsistency bothers, if it pleases you then consider this story an AU where Natasha knows who Peggy is. 
> 
> Thank you to Archive of our Own user M for pointing out the error, I hope this mistake of mine does not deter you or any other readers from continuing this story. 
> 
> Cheers.

Natasha's eyes widened when she heard Stark utter those words; _Peggy Carter was dying._  Only had a few more days left. It all made sense now; Tony's demeanor when they first arrived. She had suspected something had happened to Pepper because she knew there were only a few people in the world that made Tony care enough to cry over them. It was the reason she had gotten uncharacteristically sentimental in front of them because just like Tony, Pepper was one of the few people _she_ had grown to genuinely care for. The idea that something had happened to her had thrown her; Pepper always seemed so untouchable, so amazingly constant that it had rocked her world to think of her hurt or worse.

What was really happening though, was that Peggy Carter who was now 97 years old was taking her final breaths and she understood why Tony had such an intense reaction to the news; according to his Level 10 Classified SHIELD file Agent Margaret Carter had apparently spend a lot of her years after the war living on one of Howard Stark's properties and had a hand in raising Tony.

Natasha could understand the grief he was going through and sympathized with him but right now, what he was talking about; synthesizing a variation of the Super soldier serum? It was _madness_. She had let out a breath when Steve had vetoed the idea but then Stark had dropped the biggest bomb he could have on Rogers. And now it seemed that Steve was actually considering going along with Stark.

He had gone completely pale at the mention of Carters deteriorating condition and shuddered before taking a seat his legs shaky. Tony was uncharacteristically somber and he laid a steadying hand on the larger man offering comfort without compromising his own feelings on the matter which must have been substantial considering that in a lot of ways Peggy Carter had been his surrogate mother.

Now all the pieces were falling into place, why Tony had been so sad when they had arrived and why he was pushing for synthesizing this formula; he wanted to save Carter but this time it wasn't a question of _could they do it?_  Clearly Stark could manufacture the formula without much trouble. Now, after the events of the past few days, it was a moral question; Was it right to do this? More so was it right to do this to someone who was probably more than ready to move on from her life. It must be trying not being able to remember people who so obviously have connections to you and to be bed ridden for so long. From what she knew of Peggy Carter, she was an independent woman and never showed an ounce of weakness in front of anyone. She was an inspiration to most if not all woman working in the the intelligence business the loss of independence must be grating on her. 

She moved closer to the duo who were now discussing the capabilities of the formula and how they could save Carter, or more accurately Stark was talking and Cap was just numbly nodding along still stunned.

"...and she will be up and running in about three days after her body has been completely healed from the aging..."

Natasha put a hand on Steve's bicep and made him look at her. "Rogers. Think about this for a second," she said softly halting any more of Stark's drabble.

"What's there to think about, Natasha?" Steve replied running a hand over his face and blinking up at her. "I can save Peggy, I can have her back..." he looked to Stark. "She will be young again?" he asked the other man, naked hope in his voice.

Stark nodded getting back in stride. "In her late twenties to early thirties."

Steve nodded and turned back to her. "Don't you see Natasha? This is my chance, ever since I've been here, everywhere I look I can't help but think I don't belong but everyday I think that if somehow I had Peggy back, I could survive all of this."

Natasha closed her eyes in frustration hearing the raw emotion in her friends voice and knowing what it must have cost the reserved man to admit so much to the both of them, but she soldered on trusting Cap to see reason.

"Yes, Rogers. That would be great for _you_ but did you ever stop to think about _her_?"

At this even Stark shifted a little guiltily. "Steve, she didn't weather away while you were gone you know," Natasha continued knowing her words would hurt the man but knowing also that he needed to hear this. She had been trying for a while to get him to move on from the memory of Carter but remembering her was one thing, this _insanity_ was taking things too far. "She saved the world _without_ your help more than once and she, with your father Stark," she threw at Tony.  "Founded the largest covert intelligence organization in the world and then she _married_ and lived a happy life, she had _children_ Steve children who didn't outlive her, she buried them herself and still remained strong. I think if _I_ was her I wouldn't want to go through that life once more."

Steve dropped his shoulders at Natasha's words hating to hear the truth in them while Stark tried to maintain some dignity. He tilted his head and smirked at her arrogantly, expertly hiding is grief.

"How come you're so knowledgeable about her Romanoff?"

Natasha scowled at him. "If you remember Stark I was working for the enemy at the time that Carter was Director of SHIELD. You don't think that I didn't have an entire dossier on her?"

Steve looked startled at _that_ information while Stark mouthed the word 'dossier' as if he had gotten a bad taste in his mouth. "She was a target then?" Steve asked his tone subdued.

Natasha only just managed to not roll her eyes, after all he couldn't really know; he was frozen at the time. "Cap she was **the**  target, our orders were clear; if we got any opportunity at all, no matter what other objective we were to take her out, Agent Carter was priority one."

Tony nodded. "During my childhood alone she had had seven attempts on her life."

She saw Steve's consternation grow. "Was she alright?"

Tony snorted amused and a little nostalgic. "Are you kidding? Aunt Peg wiped the floor with those idiots during the time between raising me and saving the world on a day to day basis. One of the reasons I hated working with SHIELD so much was because they took the organization that was going to be Margaret Carters legacy and turned it into this shady black suit division of the government no better than the CIA or the NSA. Aunt Peg was bad ass, Fury's SHIELD? They were just suits to me."

Natasha frowned at Starks opinion but could not fault his point of view, in many way he was right, only the reason for the change in SHIELD was more sinister than just the fact that it was Fury's way of running things.

Stark seemed to get back on track. "Anyway Rogers, here's what I propose," He said bouncing on his heels in his excitement slash anticipation. "Red here's right," at his words Natasha felt her world rock; if _Stark_ was agreeing with her then they were in serious trouble, then she narrowed her eyes, no way Stark didn't have a hidden agenda here. "Aunt Peg might not want the formula and that would be her choice, so why don't we leave the choice up to her?"

Natasha blinked and she saw Steve do the same.

"I'll synthesize the formula," Stark elaborated. "You both can hound me and make sure that I don't keep any of it hidden away and we make enough for just one person. I don't touch the finished product _you_ keep it," He nodded to Steve. "We go down to DC and ask Aunt Peg in one of her lucid trips if she thinks she wants to be young again," He shrugged. "If she wants to go through with it then we administer the formula. If she refuses, which I admit is the most likely scenario, then you can keep the formula and do with it whatever; destroy it, keep it, give it to Romanoff so that Bruce comes back to a Baby Widow? I don't care, this way all our problems are solved."

She saw Steve's eyes light up again and Natasha rolled her eyes, the man was too trusting whereas Natasha didn't even have the word trust in her vocabulary _especially_ when dealing with Stark.

"And what's to stop you from synthesizing more of the formula?" she asked her tone mild but the insinuation was there and Stark picked up on it.

He merely smirked at her and pointed at Steve. "He's stopping me," he replied. "If you had paid attention before you would have noticed me mentioning that one of the key components for the formula to work successfully is Captain America's blood, no blood? No magic formula.''

Natasha tried to think of some other way that Stark could outsmart them and found none, as far as she could see Stark was being sincere which went against everything she believed she knew about Stark. She tried again.

"What's your angle in this though?" she asked. "What do you get out of Peggy Carter de-aging?"

Starks eyes flashed and for a moment she witnessed the Tony Stark she had been playing secretary to, the vulnerable part of him when he had asked her what she would do if she knew she was dying. He covered it up quickly so that Steve wouldn't notice but his tone was still subdued.

"I get to have back one of the most important people in my life," He said with a shrug and turned around to hide his face from her view as he busied himself with the computers, he glanced back at Steve his expression unreadable and spoke. "Its your call Cap."

Natasha looked down at Steve's ashen face and knew the answer before he said anything.

"Do it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the serums getting made, what do you guys think; is Peggy, provided she's lucid enough, going to want to be young again, or is she going to want to move on. Whatever you think or any other thoughts you have on this chapter leave it in the comments, if you like this chapter don't forget to leave a kudos.
> 
> Also if you want, then check out some of my other stories:
> 
> MCU - See what happens when Steve, Peggy and Bucky from the 1940s are mysteriously transported to present time. Read it here:  
> http://archiveofourown.org/works/3308672
> 
> DCU - A time travelling future Barry, a present time cannon Barry and some very delicious SnowBarry. Read it here:  
> http://archiveofourown.org/works/4378382


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So so sorry for the long wait, I hope my readers haven't given up on me, cause I'm here to tell you that I haven't given up on these stories. As it is real life got in the way like it annoyingly does from time to time! I attended to the matter and now real life is back where it belongs, in the back of my mind, and I'm ignoring it in the favor of movies, TV shows, gaming and of course reading and writing fanfiction. 
> 
> Aaaaannnnddddd now here it is ladies and gentlemen the long awaited Chapter 4 of To Be Young Again! Enjoy!! 
> 
> PS: I edited this on my phone so pardon the errors. ; )

Tony led the way into the Retirement Home his steps sure but his heart was beating double time, he held the door open for Steve. Romanoff had chosen to remain in the Quinjet, her disapproval at his idea, while not vocalized after Caps agreement, still hung between them on the trip over. Tony found it easy to ignore but as Steve crossed the threshold into the building he could see that the super soldier was starting to have misgivings.

Tony sighed and cursed his morality, why couldn't the man be selfish for once in his life? He shook his head in mock disgust and followed Steve towards Peggys room.

Steves gait was steady; he obviously knew the layout of the facility and had been here before but his entire posture screamed tension, his back was ramrod strait and his shoulders stiff, his brow was furrowed and he didn't spare a glance left or right intent on his destination.

On the second floor and down a long hallway they emerged into a small foyer with plaque on one of the walls labeling it as the VIP lounge. Tony rolled his eyes at the sign; it was only the VIP lounge if you could call highly decorated SHIELD veterans with several state secrets in their heads VIPs.

Steve didn't pause only turning to the left and continuing on, his long legs eating up the space in seconds while Tony jogged along to keep up with him. At the end of the hall stood a single brown oak door with a keypad and swipe card slot embedded where the knob should be.

Cap didn't bother with either instead he looked straight into a lens set inside the top of the door frame, he spoke clearly out loud. "Captain Steven Grant Rogers." And a cone of light barely visible spread over his left eye and scanned his retina, an electronic voice declared that access was granted and the door clicked open to reveal a luxurious suite with space enough for a large armchair and a King size bed on which lay Peggy Carter.

Tony's vision tunneled and he disregarded all other aspects of the room; the bedside table containing various photos from before the war and after including SHIELD personnel close to her and friends she had gained throughout the years, there was a picture of him as a kid and one with him freshly graduated from MIT both with him standing next to a beaming and proud Peggy, he also ignored the nurse maid attending her beside her bed and the obviously distraught Sharon Carter sporting a red nose and even redder eyes looking very dressed down in a loose t shirt and yoga pants.

All he had eyes for was his Aunt Peg who looked more frail then ever and he silently berated himself for all the moments he had missed when he chose not to visit the woman who had raised him, he had been there when she was first diagnosed with Alzheimer's and he remembered how completely destroyed he had felt when Peggy Carter had looked at him asking who he was, after that day, even though she eventually remembered, he just couldn't bring himself to visit he couldn't face her vacant eyes and confused expression as she tried to place him.

Now she was almost gone and he had no idea how to prolong their time together, if they had any time left at all that is. Then Steve was suddenly walking towards her giving a cursory nod to Sharon who vacated her seat at the bedside for him.

"She's lucid," she said to Tony. "Its good that you called ahead, I was able to fill her in on Steve and everything..." she trailed off as she looked down at her great aunt a stray tear leaked out of her eye, she hastily wiped it dry with a shaking hand.

Tony could only nod as he watched Cap greet Peggy who had definitely looked better. Her cheeks were sunken and her eyes glassy but she seemed to be paying attention to Steve even if she couldn't muster up a smile at his greeting.

Knowing Steve like he did, he had no illusions that the smiling front he put up was just that: a front. And Peggy didn't hesitate to call him out on it the second he sat down. He watched through his own teary gaze as Steve's facade broke in front of Peggy's tenacity and he openly wept ignoring the presence of everyone else and focusing on just her.

He listened as Steve begged her not to leave him and Peggy in turn told him that her time had been up for a while and her passing was more or less just a formality, Tony knew this would be an excellent opportunity to bring up the serum but Steve seemed to have forgotten about it completely, his head was in his hands, face buried in Peggys sheets as Peggy ran a tired hand over his short locks in comfort or commiseration he didn't know but Tony knew one thing; if Peggy died now, Steve might not ever get over it.

He was still trying to get a foothold in this new world and this tragedy after everything with Barnes was going to rip him to shreds worse than anything Ultron or Loki could have accomplished. Let alone what he, Tony, himself would go through, he simply could not allow that to happen if he could help it.

He stepped forward hesitantly and into Peggys sight. She lifted her sad eyes from Steves shaking form and met his in a frowning gaze before her lips spread into a feeble smile. "Tony?" she said softly. "You came."

He fell down to his knees on the other side of her bed and clasped her free hand in his, somewhere in his mind he registered Caps head snapping up at her words but he ignored him in favor of this woman who had been everything to him and whom he had abandoned to this dreadful sickness because he had been a coward, afraid to face her condition and now here he was hoping for some miracle serum to save her. The question was, did she want to be saved?

Confronted with those familiar brown eyes now glassy and bloodshot he was at a loss for words which was fortunate because Steve them decided to finally remember the serum.

"Peg," he softly ventured and she turned her gaze back on him. "Tony found a couple of research files that Howard was working on which had to do with experiments with my blood."

Her eyes widened as she comprehended what he was saying. "I knew he was studying it a while back, but I remember pouring the last vial in the East River."

Steves eyes widened at that admission. "You remember doing that?" he asked in surprise, Tony knew why; Peggy usually didn't remember much of her years after the war.

She nodded weakly. "It was only a year after you were gone. Howard was accused of being a traitor..."

Tony remembered _that_ , he had discovered that his dad was accused of treason when he was twelve, he had asked Howard about it only to be brushed off, it had been Peggy who had explained the circumstances surrounding the accusation, his subsequent exoneration and also her own role in it. Those were times in which things were very strained between those two: Peggy didn't not like Howards treatment of Tony and Howard thought that Peggy coddled him too much, it lead to an eventual estrangement of the two which never got resolved. His dad was killed two years later.

"Some of his things were confiscated and one of them was a green metallic sphere which hid the vial of blood..." she swallowed, her voice coming out with obvious effort and both men watched helpless as she struggled just to speak to them.

"He tried to fool me into thinking if I opened it, that it would blow every electrical circuit in the area, I remember being so angry when I called his bluff."

At that point she went on a long and exhausting coughing fit that seemed to tax even more of her energy and the nurse in charge started to fuss over her glaring at Steve and him for disturbing her patient. When she calmed down Peggy continued her tale.

"When we cleared Howards name he said that he lost the vial but his butler, Mr Jarvis had stolen it," Tony started at that bit of information, the name for his AI had been suggested by Peggy but he had never realized that the person she was remembering had been their butler. He remembered showing off his prototype AIs speech patterns to her basing it's accent off of her nationality as an homage to her but she had said that the voice reminded her of someone and when he had been pondering what to name his creation Peggy had suggested 'Jarvis'. It had stuck.

"... he had been helping me clear Howards name for the past year and we considered each other friends, I had been equally angry with him for the deception he took part in regarding your blood. Out of some form of loyalty and apology to me he handed me the vial and told me to do as I see fit."

Tony by now had managed to swallow his swollen tongue and spoke up. "Yes, well dad had made some headway into experimenting on samples of his blood before the master sample had gone missing," his eyes shone bright now with excitement as he clasped her hand gently and reverently. "And he did it Aunt Peg, the old man actually managed to do what he set out to..."

Peggy was far from excited in fact she looked rather frightened. "What? You don't mean the super soldier pro-"

Tony shook his head now grinning ignoring the softly spoken 'Tony' from opposite him. "No, no Aunt Peg not that," he said and Tony could feel himself growing more confident; No way would Aunt Peg say no, she would want to live, she would want to be with Capsicle. "Dad managed to make something even more amazing; he named the project Fountain of Youth and I've finished it and we brought it here with us, the serum. Aunt Peg we can save you!"

"Tony!" a more firm command came from Steve and he turned to glare at the younger man but the look on his face made Tony pause, he was looking at Peggy who was looking more or less horrified.

"What?" she asked him her voice but a whisper, she turned to Steve. "Steve, what....?"

Tony deflated as he realized what he had done, he had launched into his arrogant and all knowing persona and hadn't realised that this could have, no should have been handled more gently.

As Tony silently berated himself Steve was trying to explain exactly what Tony had blurted out but with much more care. He was failing if the frown on Peggys worn face was anything to go by. Fed up Peggy barked out. "Steve just tell me!" and while it was spoken just in a whisper and with absolutely none of the heat that both men remembered, they both cringed at her tone.

Slowly Steve pulled a small device not unlike a insulin pen out of his jacket pocket. "This is the serum that Howard was working on," He said showing her the glowing blue liquid inside the tube of the pen. "Tony perfected the formula and synthesized it using my blood.  This is the only sample."

Peggy stared at the injection pen and then back at Steve. "And what does it do?"

Steve swallowed audibly before speaking. "Its a de-aging serum, it will make you young again and because it's based off of my serum you'll be immune to all known diseases." He leaned forward his elbows resting on her bed both hands clasping the pen, eyes streaming as he looked at Peggy imploringly. "Peggy, this can save you."

Peggy's stare passed from Steve's desperate face to Tony's hopeful one and briefly glanced at Sharon who had been resigned to the passing of her great aunt and now looked gobsmacked at the possibility that she might be saved.

A long silence followed before Peggy let out an exhausted sigh. She looked once more at Tony and Sharon before letting go of Tony's hand and reaching with both frail and aged hands up to Steves clasped ones. She took the pen from his hands and gently set it aside on her bedside table, she then took both of his hands in hers and spoke words that Tony never anticipated.

"Steve, I am so sorry but I have to say no," as she said this she shed her first tears of their visit and Steve's face went slack as he registered her answer, but she wasn't done. "After all I know that you've been through and everything that Sharon has told me, the last thing that I want is to cause you more pain but Steve, I have been bound in this bed for so long that I don't even remember what it was like to walk again and that has nothing to do with my disease, I barely remember my life past the war and all I do now is sleep and be sick and I'm just tired Steve, I'm tired of living and I'm finally in a place that I can accept my passing. I just... "

Peggy had been getting more and more agitated throughout and just then the screen monitoring her vitals turned red and a loud beeping noise filled the room, the nurse immediately walked over to them.

"You need to leave. Agent Carter is very weak and you're stressing her out."

Tony looked panicked from the nurse to Peggy and then to Steve who just seemed to have shut down for the moment. "But..." he looked back to Peggy but her gaze was of into the distance and her breathing was laboured, he felt a brief moment of foreboding before she looked around her gasping for breath, her eyes settled on him and she let loose a small smile despite her heavy breathing. "Tony? You came?" And his world shattered.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! No you were not hallucinating and no there wasn't an error when your subscription box said I had uploaded again. Yes, I have somehow managed to slog out yet another chapter in the same month, a rare phenomenon indeed. 
> 
> Truth is, it's all down to you guys! My readers have shown me so much support by Kudo-ing and commenting that I couldn't resist the next chapter for you. 
> 
> So here it is Chapter 5 (sorry I'm not creative enough in thinking up chapter names). Enjoy!!

Natasha was browsing absently through the new pictures Clint had sent of Nathaniel, he was the cutest thing she had ever seen, not that she would ever admit that out loud to anyone but her namesake himself. She still couldn't believe that after knowing exactly who she was and what she had done and continued to do that Laura had not only agreed to name her child after her but that, according to Barton, _she_ had been the one to suggest the idea.

It made her feel all sorts of things inside that she didn't know what to do with, same as Bruce. Her heart clenched as she thought about the mild mannered scientist and occasional homicidal monster, she wondered where he was and whether or not he had changed back to Bruce from the Hulk.

She was well aware that she had used him, admitted her feelings to him but then said that she needed the other guy. Bruce had spent every moment since his accident hating the other guy and for her to want his help and to trick him into changing must have felt like the worst form of betrayal. Especially after what Wanda had done to him.

The strange thing was, using her attributes, her natural sex appeal and her ability to lie flawlessly was something she was so used to doing that it was now ingrained into her, she had never ever felt guilty about a successful con before, yet now she felt anything but satisfied.

She smiled at an image of a squirming Nathan on a bed with Laura and Clint on either side of him, Laura taking the picture, they looked so happy. It reminded her, for a brief moment, how at that farm she had actually imagined how it would have been if it was her and Bruce living this life.

Natasha blinked as she felt a hot wet trail of a tear roll down her cheek, she reflexively turned her S.Phones screen off and wiped at her face.

 _What_   _was wrong with her?_ She was the _Black Widow_ , she didn't dream of spending a trouble free life at a farm with a man twenty years older than her, she didn't moon after that rare man who chose not to come back to her and she certainly didn't cry over the shit that she had been through, she was stronger than that. She had survived the Red Room, she had survived HYDRA, Ultron, and freaking Aliens, why was she so distraught over one man?

She sighed. Natasha knew exactly why, it didn't have anything to do with being the Black Widow but it had everything to do with being Natasha Romanoff, through her years in SHIELD, she had been exposed to a lot of things that made her heart stutter, brutal acts of violence and torture, acts of terrorism that would make the strongest man falter and while she hadn't outwardly express even the slightest emotion inside she was slowly dying. She _was_ human after all and she had emotions, she just hid them very well.

Her time with Pepper and Tony as Natalie was chaotic yes but it was one of the first missions that didn't involve her getting close to some sleaze who was a disgusting excuse of a human being. Seeing the dynamic between Pepper and Tony even before they got together exposed her to a life she wasn't really used to. She naturally adapted but it still stuck with her.

When Clint told her about Laura she was first surprised but then confused as to why he was telling her? He told her she was his _best friend_ , a word never associated with her. When she met his family she had felt so out of place, but their immediate acceptance of her made her feel the most human she had felt in a long time. Maybe that had been the reason she had pushed things with Bruce?

Natasha was brought out of her musings as a sleek black sedan pulled out of the garage of the facility and swept up the drive, she blinked as she saw the long mane of blonde hair that she thought looked familiar... then she caught a glimpse of the person riding in the back seat.

She was up and running the next second flipping switches and rushing the Quinjet to take off, at the same time opening the comms to yell at Rogers.

"Cap HYDRA has Carter she's on her way out of the facility!" She heard a swift curse then smashing which she assumed was Rogers breaking down a door then;

"...It was the nurse," he said and the sound of running feet could be heard as Natasha fired up the thrusters, she pressed another button and a red and blue pod jettisoned out.

"Stark, I've deployed your suit. It's on its way," she said punching a few more buttons to lift the Quinjet off the ground. She propelled it forwards towards the rapidly disappearing black sedan in the distance. "I'm in pursuit, but I can't do anything with the Quinjet that won't harm Agent Carter."

"I'm on my way," came Tony's electronic voice through the comms. "Keep them in sight until I get there then circle back to pick up Cap."

Natasha nodded even though he couldn't see her and put more power into the thrusters, she had no doubt that she would catch up with the car but the driver did have quite a headstart, she watched as the driver swung into the turns of the road not showing down a bit, she was exceptionally skilled.

"Of course she is," muttered Natasha as she closed in on the car.

A few minutes later Tony's voice rang through the comms. "Nat, I'm here. Go get cap, I'll get Peggy out."

She observed his signal on her radar confirming his position and pulling back slightly to do a loop to turn back then pushing full power to thrusters. "Tony, be careful," she said as she passed him by.

Tony grunted. "Its only one girl," he replied.

"So am I," she shot back. "That's what tipped me off; the nurse she's Yelena Bolova, from the Red Room. She's a Black Widow."

* * *

Steve was running full out down the road leading down from the Retirement Facility, he cursed his enhanced speed which still wasn't fast enough to match Tony but he didn't slow down just kept running until his comms turned on.

"Cap, grab hold," he looked up to see the Quinjet hovering just above and in front of him, he skidded to a halt and latched onto the harness Natasha had dropped down for him, once secure she activated the winch to reel him up while she took the Quinjet out of autopilot and took her place at the Pilot seat again.

Once he was on board Natasha shut the hatch he had just come through and said. "We're five minutes out, Tony's hot on her tail but he doesn't want to do anything that might hurt Carter."

Steve nodded his face a mask of worry and anger, he kept remembering the tired look on Peggys face as she told him 'No', she had been ready to move on and now...? She didn't need this.

"Who's Yelena Bolova?" he asked to give himself something to do.

Natasha's mouth curled down in a scowl. "She's from the Red Room, a Black Widow like me, only she didn't defect from them like I did, no she decided that she liked being a killer, no not liked but loved, after the Red Room got taken down she starting doing independent contracts, basically an assassin for hire. When she learned about me she tracked me down, gloated how she was created to replace me, she claimed to be better then me in every way and I agreed that she was, except for where it counted. She didn't like that very much," Natasha looked over at Steve for a moment. "We _don't_ get along."

Steve nodded understanding. "I gathered," He replied. "What makes you think she's HYDRA though?"

"Ever since my..." she trailed of trying to find a word. "Encounter with Yelena for the first time, I've kept a close eye on her. My contacts informed me a couple of years ago that Yelena was no longer working contracts, another informed me of a couple of missions designed to decimate SHIELDs satellite systems had Yelena's handiwork all over them. When we captured Intel from Von Struckers hide out though, that's when I got the confirmation, she was on a short list of people next in line for experimentations after the twins."

"Okay, so out of the three of us I'm guessing you are the best person to take her on?"

Natasha nodded her face impassive.

"Good once we come up to them put the jet on auto pilot, I'll take you down with me and try to stop the car, once that happens you engage Bolova and I'll get Peggy out of there, Tony can circle overhead and provide cover fire."

Two minutes later they were rappelling down a line straight on top of Yelena's speeding car. Natasha landed first, on one knee, then got out of the way as Steve let go of the line landing next to her his shield piercing the roof like a knife through butter as he landed. Standing straight immediately he leaned over to the driver side, grabbing each door he yelled out in effort and ripped both doors of its hinges. Letting them both fall he got in behind Yelena the woman only lifting a gun very similar to the one that Natasha favored and aimed at a sedated Peggy.

"One more move," she said in a thick Russian accent that wasn't present when she met them as Peggys nurse. "And she dies."

Steve shrugged then and said. "Its not my move."

Yelena's eyes widened in confusion until.... 

"No, it's mine," said Natasha as she swung in through the front passenger window and kicked Yelena off the wheel and straight out of the car, Steve tucked Peggy into him, his shield covering her back, and jumped out of the car, he rolled with her absorbing most of the impact the shield withstanding the rest. The car went out of control hitting the curb and tumbling twice before landing on its roof. 

He laid Peggy gently on the ground checking her vitals and determining her to be relatively okay. Some yards away Natasha and Yelena were getting up from their tumble, Natasha had a busted lip and a nasty bruise on her cheek but was otherwise fine, Yelena though was definitely worse for wear; her head was bleeding, sporting a nasty gash, she held her left arm as if it were broken and there was a definite limp in her gate as she walked towards Natasha.

"Hello Natalia," she said her words slurry and stuttering. "You have found some new friends, I see."

Natasha growled and stepped forward eager to finish her off but she held up a hand.

"As much as I would like to end you Natalia I'm afraid I am pressed for time," she said looking straight at them making no move to break for it. "And while my mission to obtain the serum was unsuccessful I'm sure we will have more opportunities in the future."

Steves eyes widened as he searched frantically for the serum before realizing that it was where Peggy had left it, on her bedside table. He narrowed his eyes at the Black Widow. "You stole it," he stated with certainty. 

Yelena smirked. "In a manner of speaking," replied the Russian, she pulled out from within her pockets the serum injection pen, the _empty_ injection pen.

Steve stared at it shocked for a moment as he felt more than heard Tony land besides them and aim all his weapons at her. "Where is the serum," he said his voice tight.

Yelena raised her eyebrow at him. "Where do you think?" she asked her smile now coquettish and even with a broken arm and bleeding skull she seemed to pull it off perfectly. "I certainly could not have taken it for I would become a baby."

Tony seemed to falter, Steve and Natasha were lost for words one with shock the other with anger. "But then who..." he trailed of as the realisation hit them all and as one they turned to look at Peggy Carter.

"No!" Tony yelled immediately abandoning his suit and kneeling down next to Peggy. "She had to be prepared for it, and she needs to be in a special incubation chamber for it to work."

Yelena's smirk now grew more pronounced. "And while you are busy with that I will be gone."

Natasha seemed to find her voice again. "And how will you escape all of us?" she growled out.

"Oh Natalia," she replied tutting at her. "You should know me better than that; I always have an escape plan."

She shifted her arm and Steve now saw why she was cradling it so close to the her chest, her arm wasn't broken, she had been hiding some kind of tech that was lit up with a green and yellow light and as soon as they saw it Yelena pressed something on it, a bright flash and she disappeared into thin air.

Steve and Natasha stood stunned staring at the spot until Tony's frantic voice penetrated their thoughts. "FRIDAY," he was yelling. "Take Peggy straight to Dr Cho's incubation cradle settle her in and launch protocol two-two-three monitor her vitals and make sure no one approaches the container until I or Dr Cho get there."

FRIDAY didn't bother replying but simply dismantled the suit and reassembled it around Peggys body, within seconds it was airborne heading towards New York.

"Nat," Tony said after running a hand down his somber face. "We need to get back, now."

Natasha nodded and called for the Quinjet, Steve knew she was itching to go after Yelena but knew better than to voice that thought, he was grateful for that.

As they rushed up the ramp of the Quinjet Steve asked Tony. "What exactly is wrong with Peggy?"

Tony sighed and sat heavily down on one of the seats. "She's beginning the change, the serum was injected directly into the bloodstream and it activated immediately..."

"What else?" he prodded.

"The problem is that it was to be injected under control conditions, in a sterile environment and tons of preparation was needed before we could inject anything."

"So what happens now?"

"Now, we hope that Aunt Peg pulls through because without the proper procedure the serum might end up killing her."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please pardon any errors, I edit on my phone and might have missed something. 
> 
> Don't forget to leave a kudos and comments if you liked this chapter and if you didn't then tell me why in the comment section. 
> 
> Here's to more quicker updates! Cheers!!


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